Using The Locrian Scale To Write Metal Riffs

  When trying to write a riff, the sheer amount of options available can be pretty daunting. You can play literally anything, which sometimes makes it hard to know where to start. As a result, it can be an easy temptation to revert to muscle memory and turn out more riffs that are rather similar to things that one has already written.  This can make writing songs in riff-dominated styles like meta

  We spend a lot of time and attention on learning how to play improvised solos. When we think of improvisation in music, the first image that likely comes into our heads is of a soloist tearing through scales and arpeggios. It makes sense that the focus is on improvising solos; not only are improvised solos integrated into otherwise pre-composed to a degree that other would-be improvised elements

There’s something about a good riff that’s a little elusive. We all can feel when we write a riff that just works, but good riffs are hard to write on demand. Writing good riffs tends to require fiddling, trial and error, and, above all, a strong core concept. This can make writing riffs a slow process, with many guitarists choosing to wait on riffs to come to them naturally. While there is nothin